His heart was visible, and the dismal sack that maketh excrement of what is eaten.

Join Date

Mar 2006

Posts

11,295

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I probably carry the Ruger LCP more than any other pistol I have. It's small size makes it much more likely you won't go out unarmed to avoid discomfort. And modern ammo makes it a more feasible weapon for self defense. I have a tiny little Fobus passive retention holster it rides in. I love it.

It's got a hella stiff trigger pull, but that's not really a big deal. A bit more concerning to me is that I have long fingers and it has a very small grip. Because of this, my trigger finger wants to protrude too far through the trigger guard. Sometimes my trigger finger bumps into my thumb and impedes my trigger pull. I don't like that, but it's just something I have to be conscious of when I'm shooting.

It's a snappy little fucker with a heavy trigger pull, so it's not much fun to shoot on the range, but that's not what it's meant for obviously. Overall, I really like it and am happy to have it.

Edit: I have no idea of OP's experience as a shooter, but FWIW - I consider small pistols to be a poor choice of weapon for a newish shooter. Small pistols require more experience to handle safely and employ effectively, IMO.

I had a keltec mouse gun and it rattled it's self unreliable in under 500 rounds.

I have had similar experiences with Kel-Tecs. Their whole company is like me drawing spaceships when I was 9: some really cool ideas, but nowhere near the skill level to actually build them (George Kellgren, founder of Kel-Tec, is also the uber-craftsman who brought us the Tec-9).

I had a Kel-Tec P-11 that failed constantly (the aforementioned shaking loose, broken firing pins, lousy trigger) and a SUB2000 carbine. The SUB2000 is a kickass concept with marginal build quality which is hopelessly gimped by the worst sights ever fitted to a long gun. I finally sold it out of frustration.

If you want a damn good mouse gun, consider a SIG P230 if you have money, and a Makarov/PA-63 if you don't.

Last edited by DOHC_Holiday; 6/10/2011 8:43pm at .
Reason: I dunno, bored I guess.

Out of those three, the S&W has the best trigger pull. That's not saying much for such a small gun, but it does have the least gritty one out of the bunch.

The S&W and Ruger are both reliable out of the box. The Kel-Tec *may* need more fluff and buff before it becomes a trusted shooter.

On another note,

Is this gun just for pocket carry, and if so, are you dead set on a semiauto?

If not, I'd recommend one of the S&W Airweights. I use a S&W 442 in a plain ol' Uncle Mike's pocket holster, and it disappears into the front pocket of my cargo shorts, no bulge. With 5 rounds of Speer Gold Dot 130 grain +P hollowpoints (designed for short barrel lengths), I feel as well-armed as any.

If not, I'd recommend one of the S&W Airweights. I use a S&W 442 in a plain ol' Uncle Mike's pocket holster, and it disappears into the front pocket of my cargo shorts, no bulge. With 5 rounds of Speer Gold Dot 130 grain +P hollowpoints (designed for short barrel lengths), I feel as well-armed as any.

+1. The S&W 442 and 642 are great carry pistols. Lightweight, hammerless to avoid snagging, and decently powerful with +P ammo (I load my own stuff, very hot). The revolver is also a better choice for self defense in my opinion. No safteys, cocking, misfires, etc. Just point and click.

The 200 grain .44 Special Gold Dot load available from both CCI and Speer is not the same as the old 200 grain JHP loaded in .45ACP by Speer so many years ago.

If you meant “flying ashtrays” as a generic term for large bore hollow points, please ignore this post.

How do you figure , the ballistics are close enough to make little difference , just as they are between a given 185 grain .45acp and 180 grain .44 special , the difference in diameter will play a larger factor after actual bullet construction than anything else.

The Pug already mentioned if a decent choice , I still have one , though heavily worked on , likewise the SP101 Ruger , and many of the small Colt and Smith offerings in .38 special are a step up on .380 , especially loaded to plusP specs.

Here's something that might be redundant here but that I'll reiterate anyhow , if you're going to carry an auto-pistol for defensive purposes it has to function ***one hundred percent*** reliably , you could be betting your life on that function.

And please , please ,please don't be like some of the clowns I've seen lately at various ranges , clearing that gawdamn Glock ( it's always a Glock , fuckers limpwrist 'em and they jam) with it pointed downbench instead of down range. Get some training if you don't have it already.

How do you figure , the ballistics are close enough to make little difference , just as they are between a given 185 grain .45acp and 180 grain .44 special , the difference in diameter will play a larger factor after actual bullet construction than anything else.

The 200 grain JHP bullet used in the .44 Special loads mentioned is different from the 200 grain “flying ashtray” JHP bullet used in .45ACP loads decades ago, in design as well as diameter. I articulated this difference in case Poop Balls had been led to believe their was a current production source for the bullet used in the aforementioned .45ACP loads.

Your response has nothing at all to do with the point I made.

Last edited by Robstafarian; 6/16/2011 5:29pm at .
Reason: Verbs are good; specific verbs are better.

So when I point out that said slug has been copied over and over again by the swaging crowd and turns up in bulk batches at gun shows it'as not relevant , guess it's not relevant that anyone can take such a slug , some Bullseye , Bluedot , Unique etc and a case a primer and recreate that particular load.

And we can conveniently ignore that modern bullet designs coupled with modern jacketing techniques and materials *more* efficient that the original ' flying ashtray '. You might take a look too at what some of us are doing with cast slugs in .45 acp , yes you heard me right ...cast and yes they feed just fine , gotta wicked meplat for an acp round too.. makes lotsa practice a lot cheaper than bulk jacketed stuff. You might look around a bit , there's more stuff out there than you think , some folks specialise , I buy Berger in rifle slugs for a reason , the VLDs being the slickest thing you can get in .284 and .30 , and for the real fast .22s i.e. the Middlestead and the 250AI , well at least they don't shed jackets when you really stack 'em up , similar with pistol slugs , though I cast a lot I still buy some stuff , for hog and bear slugs as a for instance I've used the 300 grain xtps for years stacked over 21 plus of 2400 , ww296 , h110 or now n-110 , they'll all be within fifty fps of each other with that slug out of a 7.5 Redhawk or Blackhawk.

Point being , there's a lot of stuff out there , even online I'd be surprised if you couldn't find a copy of that design , now preloaded flying ashtrays would be a different thing , but hell it doesn't cost that much to start loading your own , and then you can get exactly what you want , cases trimmed exactly right , charge weights weighed individually , proper loaded lengths etc,etc...

By the way , nothing wrong with Gold Dots , even in the over the counter loadings.

EDIT: CAVEAT the above load in .44 mag is *not* safe for repeated usage in the n frame Smiths. Said load and it's adjunct being developed for the Ruger , Dan Wesson and Freedom Arms revolvers , heed this warning especially with the new manufacture Model 29s and under ***no*** circumstances fire this load out of the new alloy framed guns.